| abstract |
The invention provides a boron suboxide composite material comprising boron suboxide and a secondary phase, wherein the secondary phase contains a rare earth metal oxide. The rare earth metal oxide may be selected from the oxides of scandium, yttrium, which is preferred, and elements of the lanthanide series, and may be a mixture of rare earth metal oxides. The secondary phase may also include, in addition to the rare earth metal oxide(s), a further oxide or mixture of oxides of an element of the Groups IA, MA, MIA, and IVA of the periodic table. Moreover, the secondary phase may also contain a boride, and particularly a boride selected from the borides of transition metals of the fourth to eighth groups of the periodic table. |